Consulting - how we do it.

Who we are

We have a specialist team of consultants that helps customers with BACnet equipment to build a streamlined BACnet operation. We have been deeply involved with BACnet since before its approval as an ASHRAE standard in 1995, including the operation of the first BACnet conformance testing lab in North America.

Who are our customers, and what are their needs and problems

- A customer with BACnet products in his/her facility who needs help with setting up, understanding and using BACnet.

- An IT department who needs to understand BACnet protocol better, how to secure BACnet network and how to keep BACnet traffic in check.

What we’ve done

Our clients include pharmaceutical companies, health care organizations, institutions of higher education , airports and other mass transportation facilities.

When we arrive at the customer’s site we usually find the following  situation:

- The owner’s BACnet equipment has been supplied by multiple vendors, each of which has a different front end, e.g. workstation software He/she wants to see all his/her BACnet equipment in one front end, and wants vendors to peacefully coexist with each other.

- There are different scenarios where BACnet equipment from different vendors needs or does not need to talk to each other; we can deal with either case.

- An IT department is concerned about security and congestion on a network. IT vendors would like to implement standard practices whether or not there are devices employing the BACnet protocol on their networks. They often are not familiar with BACnet;  we are able to provide them with the education that they need, and show them that BACnet networks can be secure. And we can help with all of their concerns.

How we do it

1. We start by gaining an understanding of your business, your challenges and goals/objectives. We provide a basic concept of how BACnet works.

2. We do a proposal based on your goals and objectives, and create a plan of action.

3. We get stakeholders together – BACnet equipment owners, IT department, control vendors. We find out their needs and concerns, for example IT concerns about security and congestion, and their desire to implement standard practices.

4. We then examine the current network - what kind of BACnet devices customers have, who the players are, what systems are in place. We define and provide to our customers standard best practices. For example, we recommend using BTL compliant equipment.

5. We provide program monitoring and modification. We tell customers what they should watch for and tools they should use to view and monitor their networks. This ensures that all their goals are accomplished, that their  network performs exactly as they wish going forward, and that they fully understand what is happening in their BACnet system.